Load receiving, supporting and cushioning apparatus



Dec. 15, 1964 D. E. SABLE LOAD RECEIVING, SUPPORTING AND CUSHIONINGAPPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 6, 1960 INVENTOF DOA/ALQ- E. 545:5

ATTORNEYS oak: ca 0 D. E. SABLE Dec.- 15, 1964 LOAD RECEIVING,SUPPORTING AND CUSHIONING APPARATUS m H m M w 5 y w i m \NW 0 4 W m M 0q VWVAI VZWZWKQ w w 6 c m w m ATTORNEY-5' Dec. 1 5, 1964 D. E. SABLE3,161,150

LOAD RECEIVING, SUPPORTING AND CUSHIONING APPARATUS Filed Dec. 6, 1960 4Sheets-Sheet 3 24 a V4, INVENTOR flan/A40 E. 548w w- M ZLMORNEYS D. E.SABLE LOAD RECEIVING, SUPPORTING AND CUSHIONING APPARATUS Filed Dec. 6,1960 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 ATTORNEYS DEX 2L0 E. 50545 BY Luz United StatesPatent 3,161,1ltl LQAD REQEEVWG, AND CUrlllll ilNh lG AEWARAYCUS DonaldE. Sable, 2519 Tomahawk Road, hhawneolldission, Katie. Dec. 6, 196b,Senl lo. 74,125 20 Qlairns; (til. Elfi 156) new, per se, and at thepresent time there are at least three different approaches which'a'reused rather extensively. One prior-art approach includes the end-loadingof railway fiat cars by driving the trailers on their bogie wheels up oninclined planes, over the end of the last railway car, and then drivingthem along the length of the train so that they are all loaded on thetrain in a fixed sequence of arrival. This means of loading has a severedrawback based on the fact that a trailer body near the center of thetrain cannot be removed from the train at an intermediate stationwithout breaking the train or else unloading the train down to thelocation of the desired trailer body. Moreover, the longitudinal guidechannels on the platforms or" the railway cars'severely damage the tireson the bogie wheels during positioning of the trailers on the fiatcars,and the inclusion of the bogie wheels raises the center of gravity ofthe load to an extent requiring slowing of the transit speed.

Another known type of piggyback transportation includes the use oftraveling gantry cranes which straddle the railway cars and which loadthe trailer bodies onto the railway cars one at a time. This is a slowprocess considering the fact that. only one body can be loaded at a timein locations where only one or two gantry cranes are available, and thecrews of all the trucks stand around uselessly and wait. In View of thegreat expense of these cranes, on a practical basis there are seldommore than two working on a train at a time. Assuming that it takes anestimated six minutes to load each trailer body on the train, a trainincluding 50 flatcars (which is not at all unusual) with two trailerbodies on each would require hours to load it not one minute were wastedand every body were loaded in optimum time.

In order to overcome this defect, still another type of loading has beenproposed in which the tractor vehicle towing the trailer bodybacltsthebody up to the railway car, loads one end of the body on the car andthen proceeds to manipulate the body until it lines up with the centerof the car. It is to improvements in this latter type of loading thatthe present invention is addressed.

It is a principal object of this invention to provide improved loadingand load-supporting apparatus to receive and support a load which istransferred from a truck vehicle to a railway car using the poweravailable in the truck and requiring only a niinirnurn amount of specialapparatus. This is a very important object of the invention in view ofthe fact that some of-the other loading systems require very expensiveand highly specialize'd equipment to accomplish their purpose.

It is another very important object of the present inventi'on to providea railway car loading apparatus capable of transferring a load between atrucl: vehicle and a railway car from either side of the railway car andwithout requiring a large working area on the op- 3 ,lhl,l5 ?atentedDec. 15,- 1964 ice posite side or" the railway car in order totemporarily receive excessive overhangs of the load while. it is beingtransferred.

It is another important object of the invention to provideload-receiving means on the railway car which means automatically alignsthe box as it is transferred from the bugle wheels onto the railway carwithout causing damage to the box even though the box may approach theload-receiving means somewhat out of alignment therewith.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a load-transferringsystem in which a plurality of loadreceiving means on a railway car areeach adjustable longitudinally of the car in order toaccommodate'various lengths of boxes and various numbers of boxes on therailway car. This provision permits the flexible and convenient handlingof a plurality of boxes which may cornprise any combination of trailerbodies, such as 40-h.

bodies, ZO-ft. bodies, or IO-ft. bodies, and which can stance, loadswhich are not trailer bodies at all.

It is a further important object of the invention to provide adjustableload-receiving means on a plurality of railway cars which means are notonly adjustable lengthwise of the cars to accommodate various loads onthe same car, but which are also adapted to receive rela tively longboxes wherein one end of the box is supported on one railway car and theother end is supported on the next adjacent railway car with the boxspanning the railway car couplers.

It is another important obiectto provide load-receiving means on railwaycars which means are adjustable longitudinally of the railway cars sothat they may be mu tually spaced apart by a proper distance to supportthe various sizes of boxes. Although the shorter boxes can be supportednear their centers, many of the longer trailer bodies must be supportednear their longitudinal ends because of the fact that these boxes wereoriginally constructed to \yithstand internal loads when the boxes aresupported at one'end on the fifth wheel of an articulated vehicle and atthe other end on bogie wheels. In view of the fact that these longertrailer bodies are not designed to be supported intermediate their ends,it is important when they are heavilyloaded that they never: besubjected to support only in the center.

Some of the prior art piggyback transfer system currently in use employa single turntable onto which the long trailer body is loaded duringtransfer from the truck vehicle to the railway car. These prior-artsystems require that the entire trailer body be centered on theturntable and then pivoted to line up with the body of the railway car.These prior-art systems therefore require specially built trailer bodieswhich are reinforced to withstand central support by the turntable.Moreover, this central support on the turntable suffers from severalother serious disadvantages. In the first place, a 40-ft. trailer boxwhen supported in the center prior to pivoting to align the box with therailway car overhangs both sides of the railway car by lS-t-L, andtherefore requires a large free space around the railway car before thissystem of loading can be used. It is an object of the present inventionto overcome this disadvantage, as stated'a'oove, by providing a loadingmeans in which the body being loaded on the railway car ordinarilyoverhangs the rear or the opposite side of the railway car only by avery small amount, or not at all, during the loading process. A secondserious disadvantage of central support of the body during loading oflong trailer bodies on the turntable of a railway car resides in the'fact that the truck body may not balance on the turntable unless theweight of the load inside the body is approximately evenly distributed.Obviously, it is entirely uneconomical to have to always pack thetrailer bodies so that the weight is evenly distributed therein, andtherefore when practicing the above priorart method of loading railwaycars, it becomes necessary to provide additional fork-lift equipment totemporarily support the heavy end of the body to balance it on theturntable while it is being pivoted around its vertical axis to alignthe trailer body with the railway car. It is therefore an importantobject of the present invention to provide load-receiving means whichsupport the longer trailer bodies near the ends thereof at all timesduring loading so that it is never necessary for the load inside of thetrailer body to be evenly distributed; so that no special equipment isnecessary to balance the trailer body during such loading; and so thatsubstantially all of the overhang during loading occurs on the side ofthe railway car from which the loading is being accomplished.

According to some prior-art loading systems in which the trailer bodymust be first centered on a turntable on the flatcar and then pivotedaround the turntable to align the trailer body with the flatcar, it isnecessary for the tractor portion of the truck to push the trailer bodyonto the turntable of the flatcar all the way up to the center of thebody. t is a relatively easy thing for the tractor to push only theextreme rear end of the trailer body onto a receiving means on a flatcarand thereby permit removal of the bogie wheels, but it is a verydifficult thing for the tractor to push the trailer body halfway ontothe receiving means of the railway car. The difficulty arises because ofthe fact that as the support of the trailer body by the turntableapproaches the center thereof, the weight of the trailer transfers fromthe fifth wheel of the tractor onto the turntable of the railway car.quently occurs that the back wheels of the tractor lose traction andspin before the trailer body becomes centered on the turntable of therailway car. Efforts have been made to overcome this problem by usingsnow chains on the back wheels of the tractors, but such expedients areonly partially successful. Moreover, as set forth above, fork-lifttrucks are used to support the heavy end of the centered trailer, but ifthe heavy end is on the other side of the railway car when the trailerbody is centered on the turntable, it may not even be possible to get aforklift truck around the fiat car to support the heavy end of thetrailer body. At least, it would be necessary to drive the fork-lifttruck all the way around the end of the train, which is a time-consumingand wasteful process.

It is another extremely important object of this invention to provide acushioned ride for a box loaded onto a railway car and duringtransportation of the load by rail. The ordinary freight car is verystrongly built and can withstand considerable shifting and vibration ofthe loads therein during transportation by rail. However, this is nottrue of trailer vehicle bodies which are constructed as lightly aspossible so that heavier payloads may be transported over the highwaysin compliance with weight laws. The trailer bodies cannot standexcessive vibration and shocks without being seriously damaged. Thisfact is especially true of tank car bodies which are built to be towedbehind tractors, but which may be loaded on flatcars for piggybacktransportation. It is therefore a major object of this invention toprovide effective cushioning means to give the trailer bodies as soft aride as possible while at the same time supporting those bodies againstexcessive pitching and rolling motions.

Still another extremely important object of this invention is to providea resilient trailer body cushioning means having incorporated as a partthereof torsion bar forceconverting means especially designed to convertlongitudinal shocks which occur during humping of railway trains, duringstarting and stopping, into vertical downward components of force whichcan then be absorbed in the cushioning means in order to dissipate theenergy and prevent excessive longitudinal shocks from being transferredto the trailer bodies and other boxes to be carried on the presentload-receiving means.

It therefore fre- An extremely important object of this invention is toprovide improved cushioning and load-elevating means which serve tolevel the load when it is being transferred between highway wheels andrailway cars. The present cushioning means is an assembly comprising aplurality of symmetrically distributed pneumatic bags which can beinflated to raise and lower the load-receiving means and to cushion theload when it is supported for transport by such receiver means. Thesepneumatic bags can also be selectively inflated so as to tilt theload-receiving means at any desired angle. For example, if a trailerbody is to be loaded onto a flatcar which is sitting level, but thewheels supporting the body are not sitting level, as with one set ofwheels located in a pothole, the load-receiving means on the railway carcan be tilted to assume any angle necessary to conveniently receive thebody of the trailer as it is transferred from the truck onto thereceiving means. Once the trailer body has been transferred to thereceiver means, the air bags can then be further inflated so as to raisethe end of the trailer body from the bogie wheels. According to thepresent system of loading, once the rear end of the trailer body hasbeen transferred to the receiving means on the flat car and lifted ofIof the bogie wheels, the tractor is then jackknifed with respect to thetrailer body and is backed up to the side of the railway car to placethe forward end of the trailer body over a similar loadreceiving meansalso located on the railway car. This precise operation is more fullydiscussed hereinafter with respect to the accompanying drawings.

It is another important object of this invention to provideloading-cushioning means which cushion both ends of a trailer bodysubstantially equally. In piggyback systems in which the trailer remainson the bogie wheels at one end and is supported on steel dollies at theother end after it is loaded on the freight car, the rubber tires of thebogie wheels provide a certain amount of cushioning for the rear end ofthe trailer body, but the front end of the body has a very hard ride onthe dollies, and the entire load performs an undesirable springboardmotion during acceleration or deceleration; According to the presentsystem, both ends of the trailer body are supported on pneumaticcushions which provide uniform cushioning throughout the length of thetrailer body.

It is another object of the present invention to pro VlClt: an efiicicntpneumatic cushion assembly including torsion bars and load-receivingmeans which occupy a very much smaller vertical height than the bogiewheels and dollies on which bodies are frequently supported during railtransport in prior-art systems. This is an important feature because ofthe fact that permissible vertical clearances must be maintained if thetrain is to go under trestles and through tunnels which occur along theright-of-way. Not only is the vertical clearance a very serious problemwhere trailer bodies are left on the bogie wheels, but also the centerof gravity of the entire load is raised to such a series extent that itis customary at the present time to reduce the speed of railway trainsby about 10 percent if trailer bodies are being carried on flatcars andsupported thereon by their own bogie wheels and dollies. Even theincrease of air drag caused by the higher profile during such prior-arttransportation noticeably increases the cost of the transportation byburnmg more fuel. The trailer bodies are generally not smooth on theoutside but include a series of ribs which provide rough surfaces andhigh windage, which windage is aggravated when the trailer bodies areraised unnecessarily high on the fiatcars.

In carrying out the objects of this invention, I have provided aplurality of novel structures and combinations which will be morespecifically described hereinafter, and thus other objects andadvantages of the present invention will become apparent during thedescription of the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a railway car having four a load-receivingmeans according to the present invention spaced at equal intervals alongthe platform of the car;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the railway car and loadreceiving means of FIG.1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of the railway car illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2,and showing three trailer bodies supported on four load-receiving means,and showing the pneumatic cushions fully inflated in the transportposition, the vertical extent of the cushions being exaggerated for thesake of clarity;

FIG. 4 is a side view of three railway cars mutually coupled togetherand supporting several different sizes of loads, the three railway carsbeing of three different standard lengths and the loads beingillustrated as spanning the couplings between the railway cars;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged plan view of one of the loadreceiving andcushioning means;

FIG. 6 is a side elevation of the load-receiving and cushioning means ofFIG. 5 illustrating the latter in deflated position;

FIG. 7 is an elevation view of the load-receiving and cushioning meansof FIG. 5, but showning the means in inflated load-transportingposition, the vertical extent FIG. 9 is an elevation view similar toFIG. 7, but

showing the load-receiving means in two positions, the dotted positioncorresponding with the position shown in FIG. 7 and the solid-lineposition illustrating the position assumed by the load-receiving meanswhen the entire assembly is traveling to the left and is sudently'decelerated; I

FIG. 10 is an enlarged sectional detail view illustrating one possibleair bag structure and mounting means; FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional Viewtaken through one "of the slide channels which serve to captivate theupper ends of the torsion bars, the sectional view being taken alongline Ill-11 of FIG. 12;

FIG. 12 is a section view taken along line 12l2 of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a view'similar to FIG. 11, but showing a modified cushioncomprising a rubber member instead of a coil spring;

FIG. 14 is an enlarged side elevation of a slide channel showing theupper end of a torsion bar connected therewith by a sliding block andshowing a stop means located inside the channel and secured in aselected position therein by means of a belt which transfixes thechanneland the stop means;

FIG. 15 is a plan view of a modified form of loadreceiving andcushioning means, differing from that shown, in FIG. 5 by the use of adifferent number of air bags serving as the cushioning elements and by adifferent form of load-receiving circle having two kingpin slots there,-in instead of a single kingpin slot as is shown on the load-receivingcircle of FIG. 5; v

FIG. 16 is a plan view illustrating a portion of a railway car havingtwo load-receiving means thereon and illustrating a truck tractor in theprocess of transferring a trailer body onto the railway car. The rearend of the trailer body is shown transferred onto one receiving circle,and the truck is shown in dotted lines in jackknifed position andtransferring the forward end of the trailer body onto the otherload-receiving circle using a rope and winch;

FIG. 17 is an enlarged fragmentary section view taken along line 17-17of FIG. 16; and

FIG. 18 ha view similar to FIG. 17, but showing somewhat modifiedstructure.

Referring now to the first four figures of the drawings,

a plurality of railway cars are shown supported on tracks T, there beingthree different railway cars actually illustrated. FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 showstandard 87-ft. railway cars bearing the reference numeral 1, and thissame railway car is also illustrated as the lefthand car in FIG. 4. Thisfigure also illustrates two other railways cars, the center car of thetrain of three cars bearing the reference numeral 2 and being 60-ft.inlength, and the righthand car bearing the reference numeral 3 andbeing 40-ft. in length. At the present time, these three railway carlengths are standard, although they by no means represent all of thepossible railway car lengths.

Referring now to FIGS. 1-3 inclusive, the railway car includes aplatform 1a which serves as a load-supporting surface which isreinforced by a beam 1b forming a part of the railway car chassis. Ateach end of the railway car is a coupler 1c serving to connect therailway car to adjacent railway cars to form a train. Onthe platform ofeach railway car are mounted a plurality of load- 7 receiving andcushioning assemblies generally referred to by the reference numeral 10,the 87-ft. railway cars shown in FIGS. 1, 2,3 and 4 each having foursuch assemblies; although the number of assemblies can be varied,depending on the type of use to which the car is to be put, Detail viewsof these assemblies will be more fullyexplained I hereinafter. v

Referring now particularly to FIGS. 5, 6, 7 and 8, each of theload-receiving and cushioning assemblies 10 comprises a bottom plate 12which rests upon the platform 1a of the railway car and is rigidlysecured thereto by any suitable means, for instance by bolts.Eachassembly 19 further includes a top plate 14 which is disposedparallel to the bottom plate 12 and is located in spaced relationthereabove. The top plate 14 is supported on the bottom plate 12 by oneor more pneumatic cushions 16 which will be described in greater detailin connection with FIG. 10. As can be seen by observing FIG. 5, thereare four such pneumatic cushions f6 employed in the embodimentillustrated in FIGS. 5 through 8 inclusive, and these cushions caneither be circular as viewed from above in FIG. 15, or else can be ovalas shown in FIG. 5. The oval cushions have the advantage of conformingbetter to the general" shape of the top and bottom plates 14 and 12,respectively, but on the other .hand they have the disadvantage of beingmore expensive to manufacture and more difficult to mount. For thisreason, a modification is shown in FIG. 15 which employs siX circularpneumatic cushions 17 instead of four oval cushions as shown in FIG. 5.

The cushions 16, and/or 1'7, are inflatable through a plurality of airducts 18 which can be seen in FIGS. 10 and 15. A valve 2th is providedon each side of the loadrcceiving and cushioning assembly so that an airhose can be attached conveniently to either side, and the flow of aircontrolled by means of the associated valve 20. The air ducts l3 (shownonly in FIGS. 10 and 15) extend through the lower plate 12 and includevalves 22 which control the flow of air to the associated air bags, sothat the inflation of each air bag can be individually controlled if sodesired. it is not necessary that the ducts pass through the lower plate12, for obviously they could be located either above or below the plateor off to one side. The exact details of the air duct system used forinflating the air bags is of minor importance, provided, however, thatmeans is included for individually controlling the infiation of thepneumatic cushions 1.6 or 17 for the purposes hereinafter stated.

It is the pneumatic cushions which provide the entire support for thetop plate in the vertical direction. However, in order to discouragetilt of the top plate with respect to the bottom plate, including bothswaying and pitching motions thereof, the present invention providestorsion bar means 2 3- and 26 respectively, differing only by virtue ofthe fact that the torsion bar means 24 is located at one end of theload-supporting and cushioning assembly while the torsion bar means 26is located at the other end thereof. Each of the torsion bar meanscomprises a horizontal central portion labeled 24a and 26::respectively. The central portions 24a and 26a are pivotally connectedto the bottom plate 12 by means of bearing straps 28 rigidly secured tothe bottom plate 12, as by welding, bolting, riveting or other suitablemeans. Thus, the arm portions 24]) and 26b are free to pivot around thebearing straps 28, and it is by virtue of this pivoting plus bending ofthe torsion bars that lateral stability is imparted to the top plate 14with respect to the bottom plate 12.

The upper ends of the arms 24b and 26!) are pivotally connected with thedownwardly extending lugs 30a which each comprise a part of a slidingblock 3t) located within a guide means which in the present embodimenttakes the form of a channel 32, of which there are two, fixed to thelower surfaces of each top plate 14, as can best be seen in FIGS. 11, 12and 13. The arms 24b and 26b can be secured to lugs 30a in any suitablemanner, such as by providing bolts through holes in the upper ends ofthe arms, or alternatively by bending the upper ends of the armsinwardly and passing them through holes 3% in the lugs 30a. At any rate,it is only necessary that the upper ends of the arms 24b and 2st; bepivotally secured to the sliding blocks 30. The slide channels 32 can bewelded to the top plates 14, and have openings 32a which extenddownwardly to permit the lugs 39a to pass theretbrough. Inside of eachof the channels 32 is located a stop block 34 which can be positionedlongitudinally of the channel 32 and which has a tapped bore 34a, whichbore can be lined up with one of a plurality of holes 32b in thechannel, these holes being best illustrated in FIGS. 6, 7 and 14. When abore 3411 has been lined up with a hole 32b, :1 bolt 36 is passedthrough the hole 32b and is secured into the tapped bore 34a to securethe stop block 34 in a selected position within the channel 32. Eachstop block 34 serves to limit the travel of an associated slide block 30in a manner to be hereinafter explained in greater detail.

The limiting of the sliding motion of each slide block 30 is cushionedby a resilient pad located between the stop block and the associatedslide block. A plurality of different types of cushioning pads can beused, such elements including hydraulic means, pneumatic means, coilsprings or rubber elements, the latter two means being illustrated inFIGS. 11 and 13, respectively. The coil spring means bears the referencenumeral 38 and the rubber element bears the reference numeral 49, bothtypes of pads serving the same basic purpose, as will be hereinaftermore fully explained.

The same torsion bar means is used in the modification shown in FIG. 15as is used in the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 5, 6 and 7. In FIG.15, parts which are similar to those shown in the embodiment of FIG.bear the same reference numeral.

Each top plate 14 is provided with. a longitudinal groove 14a in itsupper surface and this groove extends almost the full length of theplate 14. This groove receives downwardly extending guides 42a, FIGS. 5and 6, which are rigidly connected with the under side of aload-receiving circle 42 which rests on the upper surface of the topplate 14. The guides 42a prevent lateral motion of the receiver circle42, while permitting adjustment of the position thereof longitudinallyof the top plate 14. Each circle 42 is provided with one or more holes42b which line up with a longitudinal series of holes 14b in the topplate 14 and which receive locating pins 44- which pass through theholes 4212 and enter the holes 14b for the purpose of fixing thelongitudinal position of the circle 42 with respect to the top plate 14.

Referring particularly to FIGS. 5, 6 and 7 it will be seen that theload-receiving circle 42 comprises a relatively thick plate having anundercut lower portion 42c and an enlarged upper flange portion 42d witha chamfered end edge 42a. The upper surface of the receiver circle 42 islabeled 42 and this circle is greased to pro vide a slick load-receivingsurface as will be hereinafter 12:) more fully explained. Eachload-receiving circle 42 also includes at least one kingpin slot 42s,the slot extending all the way across the circle in the transversedirection and being narrower near the center of the circle 42. The twoouter ends of the slots are flared so as to guide an approaching kingpininto the slot as will be more fully explained hereinafter. In theillustration of FIGS. 5, 6 and 7 a simple wishbone kingpin lock 46 isillustrated, the operating mechanism for this lock being omitted in thisfigure since the details thereof are not particularly important.

In the modification shown in FIG. 15, a somewhat differentload-receiving circle 43 is illustrated, this circle having two kingpinslots 48a and 48b each of which is substantially equivalent to the slot42s shown in FIG. 5. Otherwise, the receiver circle $8, per se, is thesame as the receiver circle 42. FIG. 15 also shows a simple mechanismfor operating two wishbone locks 50 and 52, this mechanism including alever 54 which can be housed in a slot in the receiver circle 48 (thisslot not being illustrated), and the lever 54 being pivoted at itscenter as at 54a. Two simple linkages 54b and 540 connect the lever 54with the wishbone locks 59 and 52 respectively so that when the outerends of the lever 54- are moved in the direction of the arrows A thelocks 50 and 52 are withdrawn from the slots 48b and 48a respectively sothat trailer kingpins can be moved in and out of said slots; however,when the outer ends of the receiver 54 are moved in the directionopposite to the arrows A, the wishbone locks 51 and 52 move across theslots 48b and 48a respectively in order to captivate the trailerkingpins therein, said kingpins not being illustrated in FIG. 15. Notethat both ends of the lever 5'4 extend outwardly beyond the receivercircle 48 so that this locking means can be operated from either side ofthe load-supporting and cushioning assembly depending on which side theloading of the assembly is being conducted on.

Referring now to FIG. 10, this figure illustrates one possible means forsupporting the pneumatic cushion elements 16 (or 17) in place betweenthe plates 12 and 14. In the pneumatic cushioning art, as well as in therubber vehicle tire art, there are a number of different ways forsecuring an annular rubber bladder to shaped mounting members. The meansshown in FIG. 10 is not intended to limit the means for supporting theair cushions between the plates 12 and 14, but is merely intended toshow one possible means for supporting these pneumatic cushions in orderto illustrate a complete workable example.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 10, the pneumatic cushion element16 itself comprises an annular rubber-type member having thickenedbead-type ends which can include wire or cord reinforcements. In fact,although the rubber members 16 and 17 are illustrated as being made onlyof rubber, it is contemplated that they will be built in much the samemanner as a vehicle tire, to include reinforcing cords, wires or crossedreinforccrnent fabrics as may be necessary to provide them withsufiicient stamina to support the heavy loads which they must bear andto oppose forces tending to cause the top plate 14 to become skewed withrespect to the bottom plate 12.

These rubber members 16 (or 17) are first laid on the lower plate 12 andare then clamped thereagainst by a clamping plate 13 which is bolted tothe lower plate 12 by bolts 13a, these bolts being accessible frominside the pneumatic members 16 before the plate 14 is secured in place.When the bolts 13 have been tightened, the upper clamping plate 15 isthen inserted inside the rubber mem ber 16 and the plate 14 is laid overthe pneumatic cushions 16 and is bolted by means of the bolts 15a to theplate 15. The bolts 13a and 15a tightly clamp the bead 16a in the shapedperipheral recess of the plates 13 and 15 and thereby tightly secure thepneumatic cushion 16 to the plates 12 and 14. The air duct 18 passesthrough both the plates 12 and 13 to the interior of the pneumaticcushion to. In addition, several abutments 13b and 1515 are provided onthe inner surfaces of the plates 13 and 15 respectively, for the purposeof spacing the plates 13 and 15 apart by a desired spacing in order toprevent excessive side wall flexing of the pneumatic members rs whichmight cause damage thereto.

Operation The principal purpose of the structure described thus far isto receive and resiliently support a plurality of loads. Especially, itis the purpose to receive and support trailer bodies which can betransferred from vehicular trucks onto railway flatcars for railtransportation. FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4, 15, l6, l7 and 18 show trailer bodiesof several different sizes. The long trailer bodies L areapproximate1y40-ft. in length and are a little bit narrower than astandard flatcar. The shorter trailer bodies are approximately ZO-ft. inlength and comprise one other substantially standard length of trailerbody. These two lengths are, of course, by no means exclusive, and, as amatter of fact, the'present invention is not intended to be limited totrailer bodies per so, although its principal utility is based onthepiggyback transportation of such trailer bodies. The reason forthelongitudinal adjustability of the receiver circles with respect tothe upper plates 14 is to permit a variety of odd sizes of containers tobe transported conveniently and economically. FIGS. 3 and 4 showparticularly well the manner'in which the load receiver circles areselectively positioned on the top plates 14 in order to accommodatediiterent loads. For instance, in FIGS. 2 and 3 the first and secondreceiver circles 42, reading from left to right, are moved respectivelytoward the outer ends of the top plates 14 in order to receive a longtrailer box L as shown in FIG. 3. On the other hand, the two rightmostcircles in FIGS. 2 and 3 are substantially centered with respect totheir top. plates 14- in order to receive and centrally support shorttrailer boxes S, thereby accommodating several types of boxes on thesame flatcar.

From FIG. 4, however, it can be seen that even'where different lengthsof flatcars l, 2 and 3, respectively 87-ft., 60-ft. and 40-ft. are usedin the same train, accommodation of two or more sizes of boxes ispossible on a very economical basis, meaning that there are no largeempty spaces on the train. For instance, the 87-ft. fiatcar 1 has rfourcircles 42 mounted thereon in such a way that the second circle from theleft supports a long box L near its ends. However, the last circle 42 onthe railway car 1 supports the left end of a large box L which spans thecoupler between the railway cars l and 2 and has its rightmost endsupported on a circle 32 at the left end of the railroad car 2. It isalso to be noted that the railroad car 2 carries three circles 42 andthe railroad car 3 which is still shorter carries only two circles.

In a still further generalization of the carrying capacity of thepresent invention, in FIG. 15 there is shown a twoslot circle 43 which.supports the kingpin ends of two trailer bodies, respectively designatedas L and S. Trailer bodies now generally have a kingpin locationapproximately 18 inches back from the forward end thereof. Therefore, ona seven and one-half foot diameter circle 48, two kingpin slots 43a and4-31) can be located near the leading and trailing edges of the circleit; and thereby accommodate the ends of two different trailer bodies Land S both on the same circle. This adds to the flexibility of thesystem and is in many respects an improvement over the type of circlesshown in some of the other figures of these drawings.

Trailer bodies in general comprise a long box having a door which isreinforced from below by some sort of longitudinal bracing. 7 Many ofthe trailer bodies are now built in the manner illustrated in dottedlines in FIG. 16 wherein the trailer box L is provided with reinforcingbeams R having various forms several of which are shown in FIGS. 17 and18. FIG. 17 shows a generally L-shaped reinforcing beam R whereas FlG.18 shows a generally V-shaped reinforcing beam V. These beams are usedto center the trailer bodies L (or S) upon the circles 42 or 58. Forinstance, the tractor M of the truck backs the trailer up to the circle4-2 such that the reinforcing beams R or V pass on either side of thecircle and grip the undercut iiange portions thereof as shown in EEG. 17or 18. The entire circle 42 is well greased, so that the bottom of thetrailer body L can slide thereon in a relatively frictionfree manner. Itis not necessary that the trailer be backed onto the circle 42 at rightangles to the fiatcar.

As the truck M backs the trailer L toward the circle 452, theappropriate valves 2% and 22, FIG. 15, are opened so as to partiallyinflate the pneumatic cushions 16 to elevate the plate 14 and the circle42 to the proper level and tilt to receive the lower surface of thetrailer body L. Note especially that by individual manipulation of thevalves 22, the various pneumatic cushions can be inflated to differentdegrees so as to tilt the plate 14 and the receiver circle to exactlymatch the position of the trailer bottom as it approaches the circle 42.The torsion bars and 26 present no resistance to the longitudinaltilting of the receivers 42, but do oppose transverse tilting thereof toa degree depending on the amount of the transverse tilt. However, thebars 2% and 26 have suflicient flexibility to permit transverse tiltingthat is adequate for practical purposes. Thus, if the bogie wheels B arelocated on non-level ground, or if the railway car is tilted, precisealignment can still be had between the receiver circle 4-2 and theapproaching. trailer. Also, the

circle can be moved back and forth on the plate 14-:

in order to provide accurate alignment of the trailer body with thecircle.

Moreover, it is tobe specifically noted that since the receiver circleis circular as viewed from above, a slight misalignment between thereinforcing beams R of the trailer body and the receiver circle 42 willcause the beams to contact the receiver circle somewhat displaced to oneside, but in a position where the natural curvature of the circledeflects the trailer body into proper transverse alignmcnt. Goes the endof the trailer is over the circle, more air is added to the pneumaticcushions throu h the valves 20 and 22. to raise the trailer off of thebogie wheels B which can then be taken away. The truck M then jackknifesand backs the trailer body, L onto the circle approximately to theposition shown in dotted lines in FIG. 16 so as to place the front ofthe trailer over the front circle 42 when the kingpin Kof the trailer inalignment with the kingpin slots 42s of the front circle 42. Note thatthe rear of the trailer body L is free to reciprocate somewhat on theright circle 42 to facilitate manoeuvering of the truck whilejacknifing. A rope i3 is then used to winch the trailer body L squarelyonto the forward receiver circle 42 and off of the tractor portion ofthe truck M; This type of manipulation is common practice in thehandling of trailers and presents no difficulty. Incidentally, it is notnecessary for a winch W to be incorporated on the tractor portion M ofthe truck, for hand-manipulated tools or external winches can be used.In particular, a tool resembling an ordinary fence stretcher works verysatisfactorily for this purpose.

Removal of the trailers from llatcars can be accomplished by simplereversal of the above process.

Where a short trailer box S is used, a similar approach can be made,simply by backing the truck up to the flatcar so asto deposit thetrailer body on one of the circles, the short trailer body then beingwinched to the center of the circle and rotated into longitudinalalignment with the fiatcar.

When the trailer body has been rotated on one or more of the receivercircles 42. or 43, the pneumatic cushions are then fully inflated to thedesired pressure. Note, that the air compressor system in the tractorportion of the truck M can be used to ccomplish inflation of thepneumatic cushions.

Referring to FIGS. 6, 7 and 9, it is apparent that in FIG. 6 thecushions 16 are fuily deflated, meaning that the abutments 13b and 15bin FIG. are in mutual contact with each other. FIGS. 7 and 9 show thepneumatic cushions fully inflated to vertical heights which are somewhatexaggerated, and it will be noted that when fully inflated the torsionbar arms 24b and 26b extend upwardly approximately at 45-degree angles.It is also to be noted that the sliding blocks 39 to which the upperends of the arms 24b and 26b are attached approach each other when theair cushions 16 are deflated as shown in FIG. 6, but move further apartand toward the stop blocks 34 in the channels 32 when the pneumaticcushions 16 are inflated. The stop blocks 34 serve the purpose oflimiting the outward movements of the slide blocks 39.

When the railway car is in motion, the pneumatic cushions can yielddownwardly so as to permit downward relative motion of the load carriedon the receiver circles 42 with respect to the bottom plates 12.However, upward motion of the top plate 14 and circle 42 and the loadthereon is limited by the stop blocks 34 which limit further separatingtravel of the slide blocks 30 which are attached to the upper ends ofthe torsion bar arms 24b and 26b. It is for this reason that resilientcushioning'means such as the springs 38, FIG. 11, or the rubber pads 40,P16. 13, must be used. Otherwise, there would be too abrupt a snubbingof upward bouncing motions of the loads carried on the circles 42.

The torsion bars 24 and 26 also serve the important purpose ofpreventing side sway of the top plate 14- with respect to the bottomplate 12. If such side sway occurs, for example by depressing therightmost arms 24b, 26b and raising the leftmost arms E i-b, 26b, suchswaying can occur only by torsionally bending the arms and the portions24a and 26a of the torsion bars. Thus, there is a continuous correctivetendency serving to eliminate side sway of the load with respect to theplatform in of the railroad cars.

These torsion bars serve another and very different purpose which isextremely important to the present invention, namely the purpose or"force conversion serving to convert longitudinal acceleration anddeceleration into up and down forces that can be dissipated in thecushions. For instance, when a train is humped, meaning the successivestopping and starting of the railway cars by taking up slack in thecouplers 1c, severe jerking in longitudinal directions results. It isdesirable that these forces be dissipated by converting them intovertical motion, if possible.

Referring now to FiG. 9, assume that this figure is the side view of aload-receiving and cushioning means which is supporting a trailer bodyload L thereon. Also, assume that the load is traveling leftwardly. Ifthe brakes on the flatcar are suddenly applied, the load L will tend tocontinue to the leftward direction with respect to the plate 12 which isbraked and rapidly stopping. The inherent rigidity of the pneumaticcushions 16 caused not only by their inflation, but also by fabricreinforcements embedded therein, will attempt to slow the top plate 14at the same rate as the bottom plate, but the cushions 16 will bedistorted from their normal dotted position 16 to the solid-linepositions 16, FIG. 9. In other words, the inertia of the road L willdrag the top plate 14, the circle 42 and the channels above the torsionbars 24 and 26 leftwardly. The leftmost torsion bar 26 does not opposethis tendency because of the fact that its slide block 39 can simplyslide inside the leftwardly moving channels 32 and away from theadjacent stop blocks 34. However, the rightmost torsion bar 24 serves asa force converter because it cannot slide much further toward the stopblock 34', only to the extent that it can compress the spring 38 or therubber 49, FIGS. 11 and 13. When this small amount of resiliency hasbeen taken out of the system, the sliding block 30 then becomes solidlypositioned with respect to the channel 32 and no further relative motiontherebetween is possible. At this point, both of the torsion bars shifttheir positions shown in dashed lines 2 into the position shown in solidlines 24' by pivoting around the rightmost bearing straps 28. The bars24 are under tension and oppose the leftward motion of the top plate 14with respect to the bottom plate 12. The leftward horizontal forcevector FL is then converted into a downward force vector FD by the arms24 of the torsion bar. Thus, the inertia-created leftward motion of thetop plate 14 with respect to the bottom plate 12 is arrested, and theforces go into compression of the pneumatic cushion 16 rather than intocontinued forward motion of the load L. Thus, the torsion bars 24 arrestthe inertial motion of the load L when the entire assembly is moving tothe left and decelerating. On the other hand, if the forces occur in theopposite direction, as when the entire assembly is moving to the leftand accelerating, or when the assembly is moving to the right anddecelerating, the torsion bars 24 do nothing by way of force converting,and such force conversion is accomplished entirely by the leftmost arms26. This entire procedure, of course, assumes that the load L isprevented from sliding on the circle 42, which is true at the kingpinend of the trailer, and which can be made true at both ends of a load,for instance by providing chains (not shown) to prevent any relativemotion between an upper plate 14 and the load it supports. The chainsare not shown in the present disclosure because of the fact that theyare old and well known when used for the securing of loads to vehicles.These chains may also be replaced by lading straps of any other desiredform.

This invention is not to be limited to the precise embodimentsillustrated in the drawings, for obviously changes may be made thereinwithin the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a piggyback transport system for transferring a box load between ahighway vehicle and a railway car and for resiliently cushioning saidbox load on the railway car while in transit, comprising at least oneloadreceiving and cushioning assembly on the railway car, each assemblybeing supported on a bottom plate carried on said :car and comprising atop plate disposed above said bottom plate in spaced substantiallyparallel relation therewith; a plurality of symmetrically locatedinfiatable pneumatic cushion means between said plates; boxload-receiving and guiding means on the top plate; duct and valve meanscommunicating with said cushion means for selectively inflating saidcushion means to adjust the height and angle of the load-receiving andguiding means to receive said box load when the latter approaches theassembly for transfer from the vehicle to the railway car, and for fullyinflating said pneumatic cushion means during rail transportation of theload; and each assembly having two torsion bar means locatedrespectively near the front and near the rear of the assembly; eachtorsion bar means having two arm portions extending substantiallylongitudinally and respectively connected to opposite ends or" a centralportion disposed transversely of one plate and pivotally fixed thereto,and the arm portions of one torsion bar means extending toward the armportions of the other torsion bar means; longitudinally disposed guidemeans on each transversely opposite side of the other plate, and slidemeans on said guide means and each attached to the outer end of one ofsaid arm portions; stop means attached to each guide means to limit theseparating travel of the two slide means in each guide means, wherebyeach torsion bar means will act as a crank to convert longitudinalforces of acceleration in one longitudinal l3 direction and ofdeceleration in the opposite direction into downward forces.

2. In a system as set forth in claim 1, said box load having spacedparallel reinforcing beams thereunder, and each box load receiving andguiding means comprising a circular receiver plate on the upper surfaceof a top plate and extending the'reabove to support the box load betweenits reinforcing beams.

3.. In a system as set forth in claim 2, the box-load reinforcing beamshaving lengthwise flange portions extending crosswise toward each other,and said circular plate having an undercut periphery to form an annularflange therearound for interengaging with said longitudinal flangeportions.

4. In a system as set forth in claim 2, said railway car having at:least two of said assemblies spaced longitudinally thereof and.respectively including first and second circular receiver plates, andsaid box load comprising a trailer body having a downwardly extendingkingpin near the front. end thereof, the rear end of the body beingsupported onthe first circular receiver plate, and the front end of thebody being supported on the second circular receiver plate and the.second plate having at least one transverse slot to receive saidkingpin; and lock means in said slot for captivating a kingpin therein.

5. In a system as set forth in claim 4, at least one of said circularreceiver plates having two transverse kingpin receiving slotsthereacross, the slots being mutually spaced longitudinally of the carto receive the kingpins of two trailer bodies having their respectivefront ends both supported on the same two-slot receiver plate.

6. In a system as set forth in claim 4, each top plate of an assemblyhaving at least one groove extending longitudinally of the plate, guidemeans on each circular plate and engaging a groove to maintain thecircular plate transversely centered on the top plate; and means forfixing the circular plate to the top plate in a selected longitudinalposition, whereby the relative spacings between adjacent receiver platescan be adjusted to accommodate Various sizes of box loads.

7. In a piggyback transport system for transferring a box load between ahighway vehicle and a railway car for resiliently cushioning said boxload on the railway car while in transit, comprising at least one loadreceiving and cushioning assembly on the railway car, each assemblybeing supported on a bottom plate carried on said car and comprising atop plate disposed above said bottom plate in spaced substantiallyparallel relation therewith; a plurality of symmetrically locatedinflatable pneumatic cushion means between said plates; box loadreceiving and guiding means on the top plate; torsion bar means having acentral portion disposed transversely across one plate paralleltherewith and pivotally fixed thereto and having two arm portionsextending substantially longitudinally toward the other plate at anacute angle with respect thereto to resist tilting of the plates in atransverse direction; longitudinally disposed guide means on eachtransversely opposite side of said other plate and including slidemeanson said guide means and each attached to the outer end of one ofsaid arm portions; and stop means attached to each guide means to limitthe travel of the slide means in each guide means, whereby each torsionbar means will act as a crank to convert longitudinal forces ofacceleration in one longitudinal direction and of deceleration in theopposite direction into downward forces.

8. In a system as set forth in claim 7, said box load having spacedparallel reinforcing beams thereunder, and each box load receiving andguiding means comprising a circular receiver plate on the upper surfaceof a top plate and extending thereabove to support the box load betweenits reinforcing beams.

9. In a system as set forth in claim 8, said railway car having at leasttwo of said assemblies spaced longitudinally thereof and respectivelyincluding first and second circular receiver plates and said box loadcompris ing a trailer body having a downwardly extending kingpin nearthe front end thereof, the rear end of the body being supported on thefirst circular receiver plate, and the front end of the body beingsupported on the second circular receiver plate and the second platehaving at least one transverse slot to receive said kingpin; and lockmeans in said slot for captivating a kingpin therein.

10. In a system as set forth in claim 9, each top plate of an assemblyhaving at least one groove extending longitudinally of the plate, guidemeans on each circular plate and engaging a groove tomaintain thecircular plate transversely centered on the top plate; and means forfixing the circular plate to the top in a selected longitudinalposition, whereby the relative spacings between adjacent receiver platescan be adjusted to accommodate various sizes of box loads.

11. In a system as set forth in claim 7, each assembly having two ofsaid torsion bar means located respectively near the front and near therear of the assembly; each torsion bar means having two arm portionsrespectively connected to opposite ends of a central portion and 'thearm portions of one torsion bar means extending toward the arm portionsof the other torsion bar means.

12. Load supporting and cushioning apparatus for receiving and carryinga load, comprising a bottom apparatus supporting plate; a topplate'disposed above said bottom plate in spaced substantially parallelrelation for carrying said load; inflatable pneumatic cushion meansbetween said plates and resiliently maintaining the spacingtherebetween; and at least one torsion bar means'including a central barportion, means pivotally securing the central bar portion parallel toone of said plates and disposed transversely thereof, and the torsionbar means further including an arm portion at each end of, the centralportion and extending toward the other plate in a directionsubstantially longitudinally of said one plate and at an acuteangle withrespect thereto, mutually spaced guide means disposed longitudinally ofthe other plate and fixed thereto, and means slidably captivating theends of the arm portions in said guide means.

13. In apparatus as set forth in claim 12 and including at least twotorsion bar means secured to said one plate, said means for slidablycaptivating the ends of the arm portions each comprising a blockslidable on said guide means and pivotally connected to one of said endsso that the blocks in each guide means slide away from each other whenthe cushion means is inflated, and stop means associated with each slideblock and located on the side thereof opposite the other slide block inthe guide means, said stop means being fixed to the guide means andlimiting the separation of the plates as the cushion means are inflated.

14. In apparatus as set forth in claim 13, resilient pad means betweeneach slide block and the associated stop means,.the pad means cushioningupward motions of the top plate and the cushion means cushioningdownward motions of the'top plate.

.15. In apparatus as set forth in claim 13, said guide means comprisingdownwardly opening channels secured to the under side of the top plate,and said slide blocks each being slidably captivated in a channel; andeach stop means comprising a block in the channel, and screw meanstransfixing the channel and the stop block to maintain its selectedposition in the channel.

16. In apparatus as set forth in claim 15, coil springs in each channeland disposed between each stop block and the adjacent slide block.

17. In apparatus as set forth in claim 15, pads of resilient material ineach channel and disposed between each stop block and the adjacent slideblock.

18. Load supporting and cushioning apparatus for receiving and carryinga load being transported on a car, comprising a bottom plate supportedon said car; a top plate disposed above said bottom plate in spacedsubstantially parallel relation for carrying said load; inflatablepneumatic cushion means between said plates and resiliently maintainingthe spacing therebetween; and two torsion bar means, each comprising acentral bar portion pivotally secured parallel to one of said plates anddisposed transversely of said car, an arm portion at each end of eachcentral portion, said arm portions each extending toward each other andtoward the other plate in a direction substantially longitudinally ofthe car, mutually spaced guide means disposed longitudinally of the carand fixed to said other plate, means for slidably captivating the endsof the arm portions in said guide means, each comprising a blockslidable on said guide means and pivotally connected to one of said endsso that the blocks in each guide means slide away from each other whenthe cushion means is inflated, and stop means associated with each slideblock and located on the side thereof opposite the other slide block inthe guide means, said stop means being fixed to the guide means andlimiting the separation of the plates as the cushion means are inflated;duct and valve means communicating with said cushion means forselectively inflating said cushion means to different degrees; andload-receiving means on the top plate. V

19. In apparatus as set forth in claim 18, resilient pad means betweeneach slide block and the associated stop means, the pad means cushioningupward motions of the top plate and the cushion means cushioningdownward motions of the top plate.

20. The apparatus as set forth in claim 18 including at least two spacedload receiving and cushioning apparatus, wherein each load receivingmeans slidably engages the associated top plate to permit adjustment ofthe positions of the receiving means with respect to each otherlongitudinally of the car; and means for locking each receiving means ina selected longitudinal position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTSFredriks Dec. 11, 1962

7. IN A PIGGYBACK TRANSPORT SYSTEM FOR TRANSFERRING A BOX LOAD BETWEEN AHIGHWAY VEHICLE AND A RAILWAY CAR FOR RESILIENTLY CUSHIONING SAID BOXLOAD ON THE RAILWAY CAR WHILE IN TRANSIT, COMPRISING AT LEAST ONE LOADRECEIVING AND CUSHIONING ASSEMBLY ON THE RAILWAY CAR, EACH ASSEMBLYBEING SUPPORTED ON A BOTTOM PLATE CARRIED ON SAID CAR AND COMPRISING ATOP PLATE DISPOSED ABOVE SAID BOTTOM PLATE IN SPACED SUBSTANTIALLYPARALLEL RELATION THEREWITH; A PLURALITY OF SYMMETRICALLY LOCATEDINFLATABLE PNEUMATIC CUSHION MEANS BETWEEN SAID PLATES; BOX LOADINGRECEIVING AND GUIDING MEANS ON THE TOP PLATE; TORSION BAR MEANS HAVING ACENTRAL PORTION DISPOSED TRANSVERSELY ACROSS ONE PLATE PARALLELTHEREWITH AND PIVOTALLY FIXED THERETO AND HAVING TWO ARM PORTIONSEXTENDING SUBSTANTIALLY LONGITUDINALLY TOWARD THE OTHER PLATE AT ANACUTE ANGLE WITH RESPECT THERETO TO RESIST TILTING OF THE PLATES IN ATRANSVERSE DIRECTION; LONGITUDINALLY DISPOSED GUIDE MEANS ON EACHTRANSVERSELY OPPOSITE SIDE OF SAID OTHER PLATE AND INCLUDING SLIDE MEANSON SAID GUIDE MEANS AND EACH ATTACHED TO THE OUTER END OF ONE OF SAIDARM PORTIONS; AND STOP MEANS ATTACHED TO EACH GUIDE MEANS TO LIMIT THETRAVEL OF THE SLIDE MEANS IN EACH GUIDE MEANS, WHEREBY EACH TORSION BARMEANS WILL ACT AS A CRANK TO CONVERT LONGITUDINAL FORCES OF ACCELERATIONIN ONE LONGITUDINAL DIRECTION AND OF DECELERATION IN THE OPPOSITEDIRECTION INTO DOWNWARD FORCES.